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Quito. – this Ecuadorian National Police Three men were arrested after they were found dismembering a body in an area of Portoviejo, capital of the coastal Manabí province, according to reports on Tuesday.
The agency said in a statement that the detainees belonged to a transnational organized crime group and were caught at the scene and crime scene on Monday evening.
A reserved complaint informed the police of violent deaths in the San Alejo area of Portoviejo, so the entity launched an operation called “Zero Impunity 1657”.
At the scene, agents surprised three subjects as they dismembered the bodies, but upon noticing the police presence, they fled the scene, sparking a foot chase that culminated in their arrest at another nearby home.
The three detainees, all of Ecuadorian nationality, have been identified as Carlos Julio PV, 23; Ricardo Jandel MC, 20; and Steven Jesus MC, 24; who documented four previous arrests for rebellion, drug trafficking, robbery, escaping detention, and six judicial proceedings.
Police reiterated: “The arrested persons are members of transnational organized criminal groups operating in this jurisdiction.” Police identified the victim as 20-year-old Ecuadorian Henry Javier Molina Ramírez.
During the operation, agents seized a 9mm handmade gun, six bullets, two mobile phones, a dozen pieces of clothing and a saw.
The detainees have been referred to the prosecutor’s office and judicial hearings to classify flagrant crimes and are awaiting charges, the source added.
For about three years, Ecuador has been experiencing a wave of violence that the state security forces have been unable to stop, which may be linked to organized crime gangs that seek to control territories and routes for drug trafficking but also maintain wars among themselves for power.
Last January, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa elevated the fight against organized crime to the category of “internal armed conflict” and began classifying criminal gangs as terrorist organizations and non-state belligerent actors.
The violence in Ecuador made it the country with the most homicides per capita in 2023, with 47.2 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, according to the Ecuadorian Organized Crime Observatory.
According to authorities, these mafias are primarily involved in drug trafficking but have also expanded their activities to other crimes such as illegal mining, extortion and arms trafficking.
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